Talented chefs serve up tasty treats in culinary contest

Two budding chefs from Highfields showcased their culinary talents when they each dished up a tasty two-course menu to impress judges as part of a prestigious competition.

Hannah Mottram and Keano Prescad made it through to the second round of national culinary contest, FutureChef.

The competition is run by the Springboard charity and has been helping to nurture the culinary talents of school pupils from across the country for the past 17 years.

Year 11 students Hannah and Keano were given 90 minutes to dish up a main course and dessert as part of the contest, which was held at University College Birmingham.

Hannah made her own pasta from scratch for a Spaghetti Carbonara main course and created a Panna Cotta dessert while Keano made Salmon en Croute and Crème Brûlée. Competitors were then judged on their skills and techniques, creativity and presentation, nutritional balance, composition, taste and flavour.

Hannah bagged the runner up prize and impressed judges so much with her culinary creations that she has been offered an apprenticeship while Keano’s dishes were such a hit that he has made it through to another competition in December called ‘Young Chef of the Year’.

Food Technology teacher, Miss E.Williams, said: “There is a lot of culinary talent in the school. We were delighted that Hannah and Keano made it through to the second round of the competition and they did themselves proud by creating some fantastic plates of food. It has been a wonderful opportunity for them to experience the highly pressured - but very rewarding - culinary world.”